Nominal: Starting with an entrance exam for a PhD in Economics at Peking University

Test the limits of his power. If he cannot demonstrate to the outside world that he is still in control, then his power will be eroded little by little.

The first one to jump out at that time will probably be Zheng Hong, the mayor of Jingzhou who has always acted extremely docile.

Li Dakang had to do something.

He went to the petition office in Guangming District and, using the petition office window as a pretext, gave District Chief Sun Liancheng a very severe reprimand, demanding that he rectify the situation immediately.

This served as a warning to others and somewhat curbed the unrest in Jingzhou.

But Li Dakang knew in his heart that this was only treating the symptoms, not the root cause.

Sun Liancheng is an honest man; his bullying tactics only expose his weakness.

He has to crack a really tough nut.

Li Dakang set his sights on the Guangmingfeng project, or more accurately, on the demolition of Dafeng Factory.

This was the mess he left behind, and a thorn in Sha Ruijin's side. He had to resolve this issue first so that Sha Ruijin could give an explanation to his superiors. Only then could he boldly push forward the Guangming Peak project, boost GDP, and become Sha Ruijin's right-hand man again, regaining his unwavering support.

This is also Li Dakang's path dependence.

The first path dependency is support from higher authorities. Everyone says that when Li Dakang is the Party Secretary, he is the top leader; when he is the Mayor, he is the top leader.

Was it just because of his strong personality? No, it was because of the support of his superior, Zhao Lichun.

Therefore, when faced with a power crisis, his first reaction is still to seek the support of his superiors.

To understand how to gain support from superiors, we need to mention his second path dependency.

That is GDP-centric thinking.

He gained Zhao Lichun's favor because of his economic acumen. Otherwise, why didn't Liu Xinjian, who was also a secretary, have the same opportunities?

Now that he's facing difficulties, he instinctively wants to break the deadlock by developing the economy.

After careful consideration, Li Dakang instructed his secretary, Xiao Jin, to call Chen Yanshi and ask him to come to the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee to discuss the demolition of Dafeng Factory.

After hanging up the phone, Li Dakang picked up his phone again and dialed his daughter Li Jiajia's number.

The phone rang for a long time before it was finally answered.

"Dad?" Li Jiajia's voice sounded a little impatient, with a noisy background sound from America, as if she were in a bar.

“Jiajia, it’s me.” Li Dakang took a deep breath. “Secretary Tian from the Discipline Inspection Commission spoke with me. Your mother’s situation is… rather special. Could you return to China to work?”

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone.

“Dad, didn’t we make things clear last time?” Li Jiajia’s voice turned cold. “I have my own life and my own job here. I don’t want to go back.”

"Jiajia, listen to me—"

“No, Dad, listen to me.” Li Jiajia interrupted him, her voice distant. “I am an independent individual, not an appendage of you and Mom. My personality is free and unrestrained. I will not sacrifice my life for your official position.”

Li Dakang felt as if something had struck his chest hard.

He held the phone, speechless for a long time.

The office was eerily quiet; even the sounds of traffic outside the window seemed distant and indistinct.

After a long silence, he said in a low voice, "Jiajia, your mother... she might be sentenced to prison. Just think of it as coming back to see her, visiting relatives, staying in China for six months, like a vacation. Is that okay?"

He decided to settle for second best and get his daughter back first to get through this difficult time.

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

After a while, Li Jiajia's voice came through: "You've always only cared about your official position. When Mom had that accident, your first thought was to divorce her; now that I need to go back, all you're thinking about is your career..."

"Jiajia—"

“Okay, I promise you.” Li Jiajia’s voice became calm. “I will go back, but only for six months. After six months, I will go back to the United States, and don’t look for me again.”

After saying that, she hung up the phone.

Li Dakang sat blankly in his office chair, holding his phone.

He looked up at the ceiling, his eyes somewhat vacant.

His wife, with whom he had shared hardships during their impoverished years, had lost all affection and ended up in prison; his daughter, who was once well-behaved and adorable, has now become cold, heartless, and selfish.

He couldn't help but wonder, what was the purpose of his wholehearted dedication to his work?

The key issue is that his own future is still hanging by a thread.

He, who was always tough, stared blankly at the traffic outside the window, his eyes empty, his back looking somewhat desolate, and even a little weak.

Just as he was lost in thought, his secretary, Xiao Jin, knocked on the door and came in.

Li Dakang suddenly awoke, instantly reverting to his former energetic, tough, and decisive self as a member of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee.

"Secretary Li, Elder Chen Yanshi has arrived and is waiting outside," Xiao Jin said cautiously.

"Quickly, invite him in." Li Dakang straightened his clothes and sat up straight.

Xiao Jin went out and brought Chen Yanshi in. The old man walked with a limp but was in good spirits. Xiao Jin first helped Chen Yanshi sit down, and then made him some tea.

Li Dakang spoke first, his tone gentle: "Old Chen, what stage has the demolition of Dafeng Factory reached?"

Chen Yanshi sighed, picked up his teacup and took a sip: "The workers are very emotional. Secretary Li, you have worked at the grassroots level for many years, so you know that once a group's emotions rise, there is no reasoning with them."

"Regarding the resettlement fee you mentioned last time, Mr. Chen, I can decide to take 800 million yuan from the land transfer fee of Shanshui Group." Li Dakang said sincerely, "Please ask you to persuade the workers again."

It wasn't that Li Dakang couldn't come up with more, but while that would solve the problem, it would create new ones, and he wouldn't be able to get past Sha Ruijin. This 800 million was the maximum figure he had calculated.

Chen Yanshi shook his head, a troubled look on his face: "Secretary Li, 800 million is far from what the workers expected, it definitely won't work."

Li Dakang's heart skipped a beat.

Not right.

This proposal was brought up by Chen Yanshi last time, when he said he would "give a few million to get rid of the workers," so 800 million is already quite a lot. And even if he thought the money was too little, Chen Yanshi shouldn't have this attitude.

Li Dakang's mind raced, and he immediately understood Chen Yanshi's intentions.

Is this some kind of opportunistic attempt to take advantage of me now that I'm down on my luck?

If the tiger doesn't show its power, how dare you, an old dog, come over and bark like that?

Li Dakang remained expressionless, his tone still gentle: "Then, Mr. Chen, what do you suggest we do?"

Chen Yanshi sighed, his face full of sorrow: "Secretary Li, I have consulted with the workers' representatives of Dafeng Factory many times, and they are asking for at least 1500 million."

He held up one finger.

Li Dakang sneered inwardly.

The workers at Dafeng Factory, including Zheng Xipo and other worker representatives, genuinely wanted money; Chen Yanshi couldn't gain anything from it. How could he truly be acting in Dafeng Factory's best interests?

Li Dakang knew Chen Yanshi must have more to say, and he also wanted to know what the old man was up to, so he went along with him and said, "1500 million is definitely not enough. You've heard about what the Standing Committee said before; the government has no obligation to bail out shareholders of private enterprises. 800 million is the limit."

Chen Yanshi sighed: "I know, I know."

After saying that, he stood up and paced back and forth in Li Dakang's office, looking conflicted and grief-stricken.

Li Dakang watched him perform, and after he left for a while, he took the initiative to speak: "Old Chen, just say what you want to say."

Chen Yanshi stopped and turned around, his eyes filled with a resolute determination: "I'll figure out a way to deal with the workers. Even if I have to kneel down and lose face, I will make them understand the government's difficulties."

"Old Chen is truly righteous," Li Dakang said with admiration.

"That's just the basic awareness of an old Party member." Chen Yanshi waved his hand, his voice becoming aged. "After this is done, I estimate I'll live several years less."

"Not at all, Mr. Chen, you will surely live to be a hundred years old."

Chen Yanshi waved his hand, looking indifferent to life and death: "I personally don't care, but I'm worried about my son Chen Hai, who is all alone raising a child now..."

Li Dakang pretended not to understand and asked with concern, "Is it about solving your personal life problems? That's easy. I'll contact the Municipal Women's Federation right away and have them find you a good daughter-in-law."

This is a simple negotiation technique—don't reveal your bottom line first; wait for the other party to make the first offer.

Seeing that Li Dakang remained silent, Chen Yanshi knew his thoughts had been seen through. Without blushing, he said directly, "Secretary Li, Chen Hai has always been a good comrade. This time, he made a mistake due to carelessness. Could you give him a chance?"

“I know Comrade Chen Hai well; he’s an exceptionally talented person.” Li Dakang’s tone became hesitant. “But as you know, his situation is complicated. The position was proposed by Vice Governor Qi and decided by Secretary Sha; it’s not easy to change.”

“I’ll coordinate with Secretary Sha.” Chen Yanshi stared into Li Dakang’s eyes. “Do you think the Jingzhou Municipal Procuratorate could reserve a position for Chen Hai? Or within the Jingzhou Municipal Political and Legal System, that would be fine too.”

Chen Hai is at the deputy provincial level. If he were to go to the Jingzhou Municipal People's Procuratorate, only the position of executive deputy procurator general, which is at the deputy provincial level, would be suitable.

Chen Yanshi had connections with Sha Ruijin's father's generation, and if he really swallowed his pride and pulled some strings, Sha Ruijin would probably let him go. The deputy chief prosecutor of the Jingzhou Municipal Procuratorate wasn't important to Li Dakang either; he could simply recommend him to higher authorities.

But Li Dakang didn't want to be led by the nose by Chen Yanshi.

“Mr. Chen, I’d like to help you with this,” Li Dakang said sincerely, “but as you know, there’s currently no vacancy for the Executive Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Jingzhou Procuratorate.”

Just as Chen Yanshi was about to speak, Li Dakang added, "The crucial point is that Secretary Sha has already frozen the appointment and removal of personnel at the deputy director level and above. Now, how am I supposed to recommend them to the provincial party committee?"

“It’s not that I have to recommend it now—” Chen Yanshi tried to explain.

“Old Chen,” Li Dakang interrupted him, his tone turning serious, “the 116 incident caused Secretary Sha to be criticized by higher-ups. If this matter isn’t resolved, I’m too embarrassed to face Secretary Sha now!”

The emphasis on "we" is very strong, and the meaning is very clear—even if you have a relationship with Sha Ruijin's elders and can contact them to plead for leniency, you should first clean up your mess from the past, right?

"Why don't we make sure the demolition of Dafeng Factory is done beautifully first?" Li Dakang's tone softened. "That way, we'll have a better chance to speak to Secretary Sha later, won't we?"

Chen Yanshi sighed, knowing that Li Dakang was right.

His relationship with Sha Ruijin's father was extremely shallow; otherwise, things wouldn't have come to this. Now, to beg for forgiveness, he must first resolve his past mistakes.

"Then it'll be 800 million." Chen Yanshi's voice was somewhat helpless. "I'll discuss it with the workers. As for my son Chen Hai's matter..."

“As long as Dafeng Factory is safely demolished,” Li Dakang said with a smile. “I’ll bring this up when I report to Secretary Sha.”

Chen Yanshi nodded; this was the only way.

Li Dakang was quite satisfied. He first made a grand promise to get the old man to do the work, and then during the report, he only needed to mention Chen Yanshi's role and Chen Hai's role.

If Sha Ruijin agreed, he would simply go with the flow; if he disagreed, there was nothing he could do.

Another week has passed.

During this period, the demolition work of Dafeng Factory is progressing steadily, and Li Jiajia is also processing the procedures to return to China.

During this period, the biggest news in Handong was that the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection had established a Handong inspection team, which had officially entered Jingzhou.

Moreover, Ouyang Jing was taken away from the Anti-Corruption Bureau immediately.

For a time, the officialdom in Handong was filled with fear and unease, with everyone feeling insecure.

The provincial government building, the office of the vice governor.